Magical Meet Cute

Meltzer (Kissing Kosher) combines magic and Jewish mysticism with a searing indictment of antisemitism in this nuanced rom-com. After New York City lawyer Faye Kaplan gets dumped by her fiancé, she decides to start over upstate, opening a pottery studio in Woodstock, caring for her elderly dog, and avoiding relationships all together. Though not particularly religious, Faye is understandably frightened after a hate group litters Woodstock with antisemitic flyers. After consuming many glasses of wine, she tries her hand at some “Jewitch” practices, molding herself the strong man she thinks she needs out of clay and burying the totem under her rose bushes. In the harsh, hungover light of morning, she’s not expecting the ritual to have worked—which is why it’s so disconcerting when, while biking, she plows into a man who has all the qualities she wished for. The stranger, Greg, has no memories of who he was before meeting Faye. Could he be her golem come to life? Or just a handsome amnesiac? Meltzer’s timely exploration of antisemitic propaganda is sensitive while never overshadowing the cute romance that blossoms between Faye and Greg. This is Meltzer’s best yet. Agent: Carolyn Forde, Transatlantic Literary. (Aug.)